The revamped school start day referral bill was signed by Gov. Dennis Daugaard this week. House Bill 1164 lowers the number of signatures needed to refer a school board’s start day decision to five percent of the total number of registered voters voting in the previous general election ONLY in school districts with 5,000 …
This coming Monday (March 31) marks the last of the 89th legislative session. Legislators will return for “Veto Day” but will have no bills to review because Gov. Dennis Daugaard’s only veto was reviewed prior to the two week break. Legislators will officially end legislative session on Monday and prepare for the legislative …
A bill that gives preference to the open enrollment application of siblings was signed into law by Gov. Dennis Daugaard this week. House Bill 1033 requires a sibling of an applicant be currently enrolled in the district in order for open enrollment application to receive preference when applications are reviewed. S.D. Department of …
Three bills related to health and wellbeing of students and staff members in schools were signed by Gov. Dennis Daugaard recently. The ASBSD supported, House Bill 1181, which allows for the requirement of a certification of health from an employee of a school at the request of the district’s Superintendent, was signed. The bill returned …
House Bill 1030, which makes evaluation data of a teacher, principal or other school employee compiled by a school district confidential, was signed by Gov. Dennis Daugaard. Secretary of Education Melody Schopp testified during session that the evaluation information will “improve the practice” of teaching and needs to be confidential because it could contain …
Gov. Dennis Daugaard signed in a law a bill that changes the suspension provisions for students participating in extracurricular activities who have been convicted of a drug related offense. Senate Bill 113 would impose a thirty calendar day suspension and would make the student ineligible for two games/activities upon completion of the suspension for a …
House Bill 1150, which requires the reciting of the pledge of allegiance at the start of each school day in every public school classroom, officially went undefeated with Gov. Dennis Daugaard signing the bill into law recently. HB 1150 had zero dissenting votes in its run through the committee and floor votes of the …
Gov. Dennis Daugaard has been busy signing bills and among them are two Common Core related pieces of legislation. Senate Bill 63 faced no opposing votes during its path through the legislature. The bill protects the privacy of student records by prohibiting the collection of student information including, political affiliation, religious practices and family …
Friday marks the 37th legislative day in the 89th legislative session, leaving only “Veto Day,” which is scheduled for Monday, March 31, on the calendar. Following “Veto Day” ASBSD will provide a legislative summary report. Our summary will include three parts: overview of the bills that were passed and signed, review of potential …
The fervor surrounding school funding had been building. It started in 2011 when the state handed down funding cuts to balance the budget and progressed each year after. During the 2013 legislative interim when the legislature commissioned a school funding study details of an oncoming crisis were discussed. School districts were losing great …
Associated School Boards of South Dakota is a private, non-profit organization representing more than 850 local school board members, the school districts they govern and the students they serve.